Whether it’s because you’re concerned about the amount of unnecessary toxins we’re exposed to everyday, you’re worried about the environmental impact of the clothing industry or its dubious human rights track record, you’ve decided to take the Closet Detox Challenge.

Congratulations! Here is where you can take your first steps towards making a difference with the way you dress. Use this handy chart to help you take your detox journey, and check out all the explanations of each step below:

Step One:

You can start the Closet Detox Challenge at any time, whether it’s time to switch your closet over for winter or summer, spring cleaning, the new year or simply a free weekend.

Start by taking inventory of everything currently in your closet. This includes garments, accessories, jewelry, outerwear, active wear, lingerie and shoes. Separate everything into two sections: items that you put in the washing machine (or send to the dryer cleaner’s) on a regular basis, and items that you take care of by hand (including shoes, bags, jewelry and other accessories).

For the fabric items that you clean on a regular basis, separate out any synthetics. This includes any synthetic/natural fibre blends, such as poly/cottons. Take a step back and look at what you have. This is the physical representation of the toxins in your closet. Just like polymers found in beauty products, polyester has been linked to endocrine disruption.

But unlike the beauty industry, not much research has been done on fashion’s link to toxin-related illnesses. For now, it’s best to err on the side of caution. In order to Feel Good, it’s important to eliminate synthetics from your closet immediately or over time.

Step Two:

Next, look at the pieces from your closet that you wash on a regular basis are made from natural fabrics. Separate out any that are animal byproducts: silk, wool, or fur.

It’s likely that what’s left — clothes made from exclusively plant fibres — is primarily denim or other cotton. But if you have any linen, bamboo, hemp, or jute, take a look at those as well.

These fabrics are prizes by the ecochic community because of their sustainability: they take less energy and resources to produce. Especially where organically grown, including plant fibres in your wardrobe can help you to Wear Good.

On the other hand, there’s fashion items made from animal by-products. In wintery climates like Canada (where I live), eliminating synthetics and all animal by-products is a tall order. Fur is easy to go without, but wool is a little more tricky. Look for ethically produced goods like those from cruelty-free Alpaca, cotton yarn, bamboo wool, or cruelty-free or recycled wool.

Step Three:

Now take a look at your clothes’ labels. Sure, not all Made in USA labels are the same, and just because a garment was produced in a region with questionable labour laws doesn’t mean that it involved forceable labour. The key here is to look for transparency whenever possible. Many brands that produce garments using forced or child labour won’t want that information to come to light.

Not sure where to start? Check out third party research. Websites like Project Just, Rank A Brand, KnowtheChain, and Ethical Consumer will help you to understand each brand’s ethics and how they line up with yours. And when in doubt, try to support local makers. That way, your closet will be an expression of your identity including your ethics, and will help you to Do Good.

Step Four:

Remember how you separated accessories such as bags and shoes — items that don’t go through the washer and dryer (or the dry cleaner’s) on a regular basis or at all? Chances are that you’ve got some leather or vegan leather in your collection.

If you do own plastic-based shoes or bags that you wipe down instead of machine wash, I wouldn’t worry about those items too much. Plant-based leather alternatives may be on the horizon, but it will still be some time before you’ll find them at your local mall.

Step Five:

Now that you’ve taken stock of your closet, you’ll want to detox it of the baddies! Use the chart to help you organize what’s going out, and what’s staying in.

What’s Going Out

Taking any piece that ‘doesn’t give you joy’ in the moment, bagging it up, and taking it to your nearest thrift shop isn’t a robust way to detox. The toxins and environmental impact will be out of your closet, but they’ll still be issues whose consequences could effect your health & well-being.

Another option is to start a clothing archive. I’ve been through the closet binge-and-purge cycle many times before, and more than once I’ve regretted my flighty ways and slavery to trends. Certain pieces of clothing are so special: they are attached to memories, they make you feel like your best self. Why throw that all away?

If you have a piece that you need to detox from but can’t bear to part with it, why do it? I don’t want to promote packrattery, but I’ve experienced regret over hasty donations one too many times.

Just make sure that those treasures can be passed down to a child or niece or nephew by properly storing them.

What’s Staying In

Now that you’ve taken stock of your closet and fully detoxed it, be sure to keep the momentum of your detox by taking note of what you’ll buy (and won’t buy) in the future:

Whether selling or buying, resale is always a great option. Whether it’s consignment, vintage, thrift shops or buy & sell apps like Depop, resale goes a long way to relieving the environmental burden of the fashion industry.

Look for natural, plant-based fabrics and conscious alternatives to your favourites brands. As mentioned, sites such as Project Just and apps like Good On You can help you identify these alternatives.

Check out Local Makers. Etsy is a seriously powerful tool for finding cool duds from fashion designers and seamstresses in your country, and because they’re small it’s easy to ask them questions about their materials and get someone completely custom-made for you.

By considering your consumption, you’ll be helping to reduce textile waste and the demand for toxic fabrics.

Is eliminating all synthetic fabrics from your closet unrealistic? You bet it is! The Closet Detox Challenge is not only a commitment, but an ongoing journey. It’s not about sacrificing style or glamour, but about careful consumption that helps to push the fashion industry towards positive health, environmental, and social outcomes. And above all, remember that new innovations and information are made available all the time and so the challenge is not about perfection, but progress.

Now that you’ve completed the challenge, check out some more info & resources:

No problem! Living out of a backpack has got to be the ultimate in minimalist fashion! 🙂 And yes, natural outerwear is still tough. The other day I saw a video by the brand Vaute — they do waxed canvas as a leather jacket substitute: clever! But not very weather friendly I’d assume. My hope is that better alternatives are invented as time goes on. I have some ‘rubber’ (plastic) boots for rainy days at the moment, made by a Canadian brand called Kamik. I like that the brand will take them back for recycling when I’m done with them. Of course, I’m not too concerned about synthetics if they’re not going through my washing machine, although it does mean that oil has to be extracted to make them. Ah well, we do what we can with what we have right now!

Yeah, I used to do that method at least annually (although at the time it didn’t have a name). I’ve switched to this, my own method of closet detox because I find that ‘things that give me joy’ is not a very reliable filter. I’ve donated clothing items that didn’t ‘spark joy’ for me in that tidying up moment that I later wiiiished I had back to create an amazing outfit. To me, that method might in the short term be ‘life changing’ but in the long term it encourages cycles of consuming and discarding. Emotions like joy (at least for me) can be fickle and something that gives me joy today won’t tomorrow, and vice versa. Can you imagine using the KonMari method annually or seasonally? That’s going to increase the already overwhelmed fashion resale industry and increase textiles in landfills while we continue to chase after that next high of ‘joy’ through purchasing new clothes.

My Closet Detox Challenge is more about careful consideration at the point of purchase, as well as treasuring fashion rather than disposing of it. But I know many people swear by the KonMari method and these are just my humble thoughts on the topic! 🙂